Power Trip
by Lori - SixteenOzs
Summary: Mark/Elizabeth (Follows Picking Up The Pieces): Mark considers what he wants out of his future at County.


Power Trip  
By: Lori (SixteenOzs)  
  
DISCLAIMER: "ER," the characters and situations depicted within are the property of Warner Bros. Television, Amblin Entertainment, Constant c Productions, NBC, etc. They are borrowed without permission, but without the intent of infringement. The story presented here is written solely for entertainment purposes, and the author is not making a profit.  
  
Please do not post or redistribute without the disclaimer above, or without the consent of the author.  
  
Feedback is welcome. Please send all questions, comments or criticisms to SixteenOzs02@yahoo.com  
  
SUMMARY: Mark considers what he wants out of his future at County.  
  
RATING: PG  
  
BACKGROUND: This story is set in July 2005, about two weeks after Picking Up The Pieces. Mark and Elizabeth are living in Chicago, working at County and raising their four year-old son, David. The last episode that applies to this series is "April Showers."  
  
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: I would like to take this opportunity to thank Cari and Ros for their invaluable help in looking at scenes as I completed them and giving me such great feedback. Thank you so much!!  
  
*****  
  
As she stepped off the elevator and into the emergency room, Elizabeth looked around for the familiar form of her husband. Not seeing him immediately, she walked to the admit desk and asked, "Randi, could you tell me where Mark is?"  
  
After consulting the board, Randi snapped her gum noisily and replied, "Try the Suture Room."  
  
"Thanks," Elizabeth replied with a smile as she turned and started down the hallway. Finding Trauma Two empty, she stepped in there to wait. She glanced through the door that led into the Suture Room and smiled softly as she saw Mark suturing a laceration on a young girl's forearm. Elizabeth figured the girl was probably about five or six years old. She was trying to hold back her tears as her mother rubbed her back.  
  
Noticing Mark looking in her direction, she motioned for him to come towards her as she silently mouthed, "When you're done."  
  
Understanding her message, he gave a quick nod before returning to his work.  
  
Five minutes later, Mark pealed off his gloves and tossed them into a biohazard container as he entered Trauma Two. "To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?" he wondered as he gave her a quick kiss. "I thought Edson was coming down to check on my bowel obstruction."  
  
Elizabeth's brow creased. "Edson is supposed to be covering the ER today. Have you been waiting long?"  
  
Checking his watch, he replied, "About forty minutes."  
  
"Damn it," Elizabeth hissed under her breath. "I know he hasn't been in surgery, and a forty-minute wait for a consult is ridiculous. I'll look into it."  
  
"Thanks," Mark smiled. "So, if you're not here for my surgical consult, why are you here? Not that I'm complaining."  
  
Elizabeth chuckled, "I was coming down to see if you were free for lunch. In forty-five minutes to an hour?"  
  
"Sounds good. Want to pick up David from daycare and take him with us?"  
  
She hesitated a moment before replying. "I was going to stop by daycare and spend a little time with him before I came back down to meet you. We need to talk, so this would probably be better as an 'adults-only' lunch."  
  
"'Adults-only?'" he questioned curiously. "Everything okay?"  
  
"Yeah, everything's fine," she assured him as she reached out and gently caressed his cheek. "There's just something we need to talk about. But trust me, everything's fine."  
  
"Okay," he replied with an uncertain nod. "You heading back upstairs?"  
  
"Yeah, I need to take care of a few things before lunch."  
  
"I'll walk you to the elevator," he smiled as he held the door open for her.  
  
Arriving back on the surgical floor a few minutes later, Elizabeth saw Dale Edson walking towards her. "Dr. Edson," she called.  
  
"Yes?" Edson replied curtly.  
  
"Where are you headed at the moment?" Elizabeth inquired.  
  
He huffed, obviously annoyed at being delayed. "To the scrub room. Dr Anspaugh and I are doing a Tips procedure."  
  
Folding her arms across her chest, Elizabeth informed him, "No, you're not."  
  
"Excuse me?" Edson questioned in a put-off tone.  
  
Elizabeth and glanced up and down the hall. Seeing quite a few members of the staff moving about, she started walking as she said, "Let's continue this in my office."  
  
After they entered her office, Elizabeth closed the door, walked behind her desk and sat down. "Dr. Edson, could you please tell me what assignment you had for today, according to the schedule I prepared?"  
  
"I'm covering the ER," he answered impatiently.  
  
"That's correct," Elizabeth nodded. "Now, I'd like to know why there is a patient with a possible bowel obstruction who has spent nearly an hour waiting in the emergency room for a surgical consult."  
  
"I don't know," Edson shrugged. "I haven't gotten a page, sounds like the problem must be on their end." Sarcastically he added, "And of course I wouldn't want to inconvenience the ER, since that might mean problems for you at home."  
  
Elizabeth gave him a stern glare, but ignored the remark about her marriage. Reaching for the telephone on her desk, she said, "Let's just see if we can find out where the problem lies, shall we?"  
  
"ER" Randi answered a few moments later.  
  
"May I please speak with Dr. Greene?" Elizabeth requested.  
  
"What's up?" Mark wondered as he picked up the phone. With a chuckled, he suggested, "Calling to cancel on lunch?"  
  
"Dr. Greene, it's Dr. Corday. I wanted to ask a few questions about the patient who was waiting for a surgical consult. The possible bowel obstruction."  
  
Mark hesitated a minute as he tried to figure out what was going on. Why was she calling him "Dr. Greene?" She always called him "Mark," unless they were talking to a patient or a family member. Finally, it hit him. With a grin, he questioned, "Are you grilling Edson about not showing up?"  
  
"Yes, that's it," she replied, her voice taking on a serious tone. "Do you know how many times a surgical consult was paged for the patient?"  
  
"Lydia's right here. Let me check." Covering the mouthpiece of the phone with his hand, he turned and asked, "Lydia, how many times did you page a surgeon for Mrs. Donaldson?"  
  
After thinking for a moment, Lydia replied, "Four or five. I've been trying about every ten minutes. Still waiting for someone to show up."   
  
Speaking into the receiver again, he told Elizabeth, "About every ten minutes, so four or five times."  
  
"And what number have you been paging?" Elizabeth wondered as she picked up a pen from her desk.  
  
"Lydia, what number have you been paging?" Mark called.  
  
Lydia looked a bit confused, but shrugged and replied, "Edson, the schedule says he's on-call for surgery today. His number is 555-0532."  
  
"Thanks," Mark nodded. "Lydia says she's been trying 555-0532."  
  
"Thank you," Elizabeth replied after jotting down the number. "I'll make sure this situation is cleared up, you should have a consult very shortly."  
  
"Thanks," he chuckled. "I'll see you for lunch."  
  
Elizabeth hung up the phone without saying a word, then pressed the button for the speaker phone, dialed the number she'd just written down, then entered the extension for her office. Turning off the speaker phone, she sat back in her chair and folded her arms across her chest.  
  
A moment later, the shrill sound of a pager filled the room. Without looking, Edson reached into the pocket of his lab coat and muted the noise.  
  
"Aren't you going to see who it is?" Elizabeth questioned.  
  
Pulling the pager out of his pocket, he mumbled his response, "Five-oh-two-four."  
  
"My office," Elizabeth supplied. "So, I think it's safe to say that your pager is working. I also think it's safe to believe the nurse who reports that she has tried paging you four to five times in the last hour." She paused for several moments, letting that hang in the air. "Dr. Edson, I'm sure I don't need to remind you of the importance of ensuring that emergency room patients receive our prompt attention when surgical consults are deemed necessary. Your job today is to cover the ER, and that is exactly what I expect you to do. For the remainder of the day, I want you down in the ER, ready and waiting if a consult is needed. If, in your assessment, the patient requires surgery, you are to bring the patient to the OR, where you will hand the patient over to a surgeon who is available. Then, you will return to the ER and wait for the next surgical consult. In fact, I'm going to be drawing up next week's schedule this afternoon, and I think it would be good for you to cover the ER in that manner all next week as well."  
  
"You're not letting me in an OR for a week?!" Edson exclaimed. "You can't do that!"  
  
Leaning forward, resting her arms on her desk and folding her hands, Elizabeth explained, "Dr. Edson, I'm currently acting Chief of Staff and acting Chief of Surgery in this hospital. I CAN, and I AM, doing this. Now, I believe you have a patient waiting in the ER, and I have work to do."  
  
*****  
  
Elizabeth smiled as she fell into step next to Mark, who was walking down the hall and making notations on a patient's chart. "Ready for lunch?" she wondered.  
  
He glanced sharply in her direction, then smiled. "Hey! I didn't see you there."  
  
"I noticed," she chuckled. "You seemed pretty engrossed in what you were doing."  
  
"Just putting my final notes on the chart so I can discharge this patient. Can you believe that I was actually able to time it so I have no patients as we're leaving for lunch? They've all been discharged or admitted upstairs."  
  
With a knowing grin, she questioned, "Finally get your surgical consult?"  
  
"Actually, I did. Complete with commentary on our marriage," he laughed while they approached the admit desk and he placed the chart in the stack of discharges, updated the dry erase board and signed out. Turning to Randi, he said, "I'm heading out for lunch. Just page me if you need me."  
  
"Commentary on our marriage?" she questioned. "This should be good."  
  
"He basically just asked me what it was like letting my wife fight my battles for me," Mark explained with a laugh as they crossed the hall from the admit desk and entered the lounge.  
  
"And what did you tell him?"  
  
Mark wrapped his arms around her waist and smiled softly. "I told him that we were both doing our jobs. When I called for a surgical consult and one didn't show, I merely contacted the Chief of Surgery to find out where the problem was. I also pointed out that I wasn't threatened by being married to an extremely powerful woman. In fact, I'm very proud of what you've accomplished."  
  
She slipped her hands around his neck and whispered, "Good answer."  
  
"So, do you enjoy having surgical attendings as a mid-morning snack?" he wondered with a grin.  
  
"Oh, yeah," she nodded. Then smiling coyly, she added, "But I prefer an ER attending for dessert."  
  
He laughed softly, then inquired, "Is that an invitation?"  
  
"Tonight, after David's in bed?" she offered suggestively.  
  
"I like that idea," he murmured in agreement while lowering his lips to hers. As the kiss ended, he said, "Speaking of David, did you get a chance to see him?"  
  
"I stopped by daycare after I finished with Edson. David was having lunch, but he told me all about this project they're doing this afternoon with popcicle sticks."  
  
"Sounds like fun," Mark laughed. "Maybe we should join him."  
  
"That's always an idea," Elizabeth replied with a smile. "But for now, are you ready for lunch?"  
  
"Yeah, just let me put my stuff away." He walked to his locker, where he hung up his lab coat and stethoscope. "Want to go to Doc's?"  
  
"I was actually thinking something a little more private, away from the hospital," she explained as they left the lounge and headed for the ambulance bay.  
  
"Elizabeth? What's going on? Why are you being so secretive about this lunch?"  
  
"Nothing's wrong," she assured him. "Let's just pick up lunch and find a spot by the river. I'll explain everything then."  
  
Ten minutes later, Mark walked up to the table where Elizabeth was sitting. "Chicken salad on whole wheat and fruit for you. Turkey on rye and chips for me."  
  
"Thank you," Elizabeth smiled as she took her lunch and the bottle of water he placed on the table.  
  
Sitting down across from her, he asked, "So, are you finally going to tell me what this top-secret lunch is all about?"  
  
"This isn't being formally announced until Monday, so we're not supposed to know yet, but the Board has made its decision on Chief of Staff," she reported while unwrapping her sandwich.  
  
"You?"  
  
"No!" she laughed. "You know I didn't want Chief of Staff, just Surgery."  
  
"I just figured that's why you knew, that they told you in advance since you got it," he reasoned as he bit into his sandwich.  
  
"No, I've got a friend on the Board. She gave me a call after it came down this morning, thought I'd want to know," she explained.  
  
"So who is it? The guy from Hopkins?"  
  
She shook her head while taking a sip of water. "Try a little closer home."  
  
He thought for a moment, then his brow creased. "Weaver?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Wow," he said quietly.  
  
Grinning slightly, she commented, "You don't sound thrilled."  
  
Mark had to laugh at that. "At least you knew you couldn't trust Romano. Weaver has this way of making you think she's on your side, then going in for the kill. I've been on the receiving end of that more than I'd care to recall, and I'm not sure I want to see that characteristic in a Chief of Staff. But I suppose the good news is that she won't be in the ER as much."  
  
"She won't be in the ER at all," Elizabeth corrected, "except for the minimum hours to keep her certification."  
  
"What?" he questioned. "Isn't she going to be Chief of Staff and Chief of ER? Romano did both with Surgery."  
  
Elizabeth shook her head, then clarified. "The Board decided that Chief of Staff will now be a purely administrative position. They took a look at how things were handled when Romano was here, and realized that I was doing most of the work for the surgical department. With the rate County's growing, the Chief of Staff has enough to worry about without trying to manage an individual department as well."  
  
"I've got to admit, I'm surprised. I thought the Board would have wanted someone with more of a national reputation. At least that's what they were looking for in an ER Chief after Morgenstern retired."  
  
"I suppose they wanted someone who was familiar with the hospital," Elizabeth suggested. "You know what this means, don't you?"  
  
He thought for several moments, then looked confused. "What?"  
  
She laughed softly. In all the years they'd been together, she was still amused at the way he could be so completely clueless at times. "It means the ER's going to need a new Chief."  
  
"Yeah," he agreed thoughtfully as he stared at his sandwich.  
  
She watched him carefully, trying to figure out what he was thinking. Finally, she wondered, "Are you interested?"  
  
He'd always told himself that he didn't want it, that he was a doctor, not an administrator. But now that the position was available, he wasn't quite so sure if that was the way he really felt. Looking back to his wife, he admitted, "I don't know. Maybe."  
  
*****  
  
Elizabeth smiled as she walked into the hospital's daycare center. There was a little boy, with thick blond hair falling in his face, sitting at one of the small tables in the center of the room. He worked intently as he used crayons to fill in the coloring book picture before him.  
  
Making a mental note to take him for a haircut this weekend, Elizabeth crossed the room and sat in the empty chair next to her son. "Is that for me?"  
  
"Mummy!" David exclaimed as he looked up and turned to face at her. "Is it time to go home?"  
  
"Yes, it is," she confirmed. "We just need to go down to the ER and wait for Daddy."  
  
"Can I finish my picture?" David wondered. "I'm almost done."  
  
"Sure," she nodded. Looking at the picture of a boy playing basketball, she commented, "You're doing a very good job. Are you making that for me?"  
  
"No," he shook his head as picked up another crayon. "This is for Daddy. He's teaching me how to play basketball."  
  
"Are you enjoying that?" Elizabeth asked. Just a few weeks after they moved into the house, Mark installed a basketball hoop in the driveway. So it hadn't really surprised her when he came home the previous weekend with an adjustable hoop for David.  
  
"Yeah, it's fun," David replied happily, then returned his focus to his coloring.  
  
Looking across the table, Elizabeth found Tommy Bryant, David's best friend, drawing on a piece of folded pink construction paper with a white doily glued to the front. "Hi, Tommy."  
  
He looked up. "Hi, Dr. Corday."  
  
"What are you working on?" Elizabeth asked curiously.  
  
"Tomorrow's my mom's birthday. I'm making her a card," he explained, proudly turning his creation so Elizabeth could see it. He hesitated a moment, then wondered, "Do you think she'll like it?"  
  
"I think she'll love it," Elizabeth assured him. "Especially since you're making it for her yourself."  
  
"David said tonight's Game Night at your house?" Tommy questioned.  
  
"Yeah, we're going to order pizza and play board games."  
  
Tommy returned to his drawing, but dejectedly said, "I wish we did stuff like that at my house."  
  
"Have you talked to your mum about doing something like that once in a while?" Elizabeth wondered. She knew Tommy's parents were divorced and he lived with mother, who was a nurse in the ICU.  
  
"She's always so tired when she gets home. She usually doesn't feel like it," he replied.  
  
Elizabeth smiled sympathetically. She knew just how draining shifts at the hospital could be, but she had Mark. She didn't have to do of everything on her own. Knowing Tommy's mother could probably use an evening off, just to herself, Elizabeth suggested, "Would you like it if I talked to your mum to see if you could spend next Friday night with us? You could come home with us, we'd order pizzas, play games, then you could spend the night in David's room and we'd take you home the next day."  
  
David suddenly looked up from his coloring book. "Tommy can spend the night?" he asked with a huge smile.  
  
"Really?" Tommy questioned suspiciously.  
  
"Really," Elizabeth confirmed. "We just need to check with your mum to make sure it's okay with her." Reaching into her purse, Elizabeth pulled out one of her business cards and a pen. After writing her home telephone number on the back of the card she handed it to Tommy. "Give this to your mum, and have her give me a call this weekend so we can talk about it."  
  
"Okay," he agreed cheerfully. "Thanks, Dr. Corday."  
  
"You're welcome," she smiled. Turning back to David she wondered, "Are you ready to go find Daddy?"  
  
David carefully wrote his name at the bottom of the picture, then tore the page out along the perforated edge. "Yup. All done," he announced.  
  
"Okay, get your backpack and we'll go downstairs." Turning to Tommy, she added, "Have a good weekend, see you Monday."  
  
"Bye, David. Bye, Dr. Corday."  
  
"Bye, Tommy," David waved as he took his mother's hand and they started down the hall towards the elevator.  
  
Five minutes later, David broke away from Elizabeth's grasp as he saw his father standing at the ER admit desk, along with Carter and Jing-Mei.   
  
"Daddy!" David cried gleefully.  
  
Mark turned to look at the little boy running towards him. "Hey, Buddy!" he said as he kneeled down to David's level. "How was your day?"  
  
"It was fun! We made airplanes out of popsicle sticks," David explained.  
  
"Do I get to see your airplane?" Mark wondered as he picked David up and sat him on the counter.  
  
"It's still upstairs. We're gonna paint them next week, then I can bring it home."  
  
"That sounds like fun," Mark smiled. "Did you do anything else?"  
  
"I made you a picture," David said proudly as he displayed the sheet of paper he was holding.  
  
"That is very good," Mark assured him. "We'll hang it on the refrigerator when we get home."  
  
Carter asked David, "Do you want to be a basketball player when you grow up?"  
  
David shook his head adamantly. "I want to be a doctor."  
  
Mark and Elizabeth both chuckled as Carter commented, "A mother in surgery and a father in the ER. I wonder where he got the idea he wants to be a doctor?"  
  
"Actually, being medicine is probably the last thing I'd encourage David to go into," Elizabeth admitted.  
  
With a wary smile, Mark agreed, "Same here."  
  
"Really?" Jing-Mei questioned.  
  
"Daddy? Can we go home now?" David interrupted impatiently.  
  
"I just need to go on rounds with Carter first."  
  
David smiled while giving his father his best "puppy-dog" look as he asked, "Can I go with you?"  
  
Mark laughed, then took off his stethoscope and hung it around David's neck. "Sure. You can come with us, but you have to be good."  
  
"I will, Daddy," David promised solemnly.  
  
"Okay, then. Let's go," Mark said as he lifted David off the counter. Turning to Carter, he wondered, "Ready to see what you're in for tonight?"  
  
Elizabeth laughed softly while she watched them walk away.  
  
"You really wouldn't push David into medicine?" Jing-Mei questioned curiously.  
  
Elizabeth thought for a moment, then shook her head. "No. I know I wouldn't be happy doing anything else, and I'm fairly certain Mark feels the same way. I just don't want David to feel that he must become a doctor because that's the career we choose. I want him to find something that makes him happy, something he enjoys, something for which he has a natural talent. Now, if he does decide to go into medicine, I know Mark I will both be thrilled. But even if he doesn't, we'll still be proud of him."  
  
Jing-Mei gave a soft, rueful laugh. "I wish my parents had felt that way."  
  
"What do you mean?" Elizabeth inquired.  
  
"Both of my parents are surgeons," she began to explain. "For practically as long as I can remember, I've known they wanted me to go into medicine. So I went though college, then med. school. But I was just doing it for them. I finally dropped out during my third year."  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"I was trying to put in a chest tube by myself, and left the guide wire in the patient's chest," she confessed somewhat sheepishly. "I quit after that. I realized I just couldn't continue living my life for my parents. I was being entirely too aggressive and too competitive because it was what I thought they wanted, what I thought they saw in a good doctor."  
  
"How'd you end up back here?" Elizabeth asked, finding herself very interested by the younger doctor's story.  
  
"About four months after I left, I was on the El when this man started having a heart attack. I knew what to do, and I went into action. I liked the way it felt to save a life," she admitted softly. "I decided to go back to school, but this time it was for me. I even moved to New York, just so I wouldn't have to deal with my parents day in and day out. When my program there closed, I came back."  
  
"You're an excellent doctor, and we're very glad to have you here," Elizabeth said with a smile.  
  
"Thanks," Jing-Mei smiled back.  
  
"My father and grandfather were both doctors, but I never felt like I was pushed into medicine. It was always something I just knew I wanted to do. Not to mention the added benefit of irritating my mother in the process," Elizabeth grinned.  
  
"Oh, really?"  
  
"My mother is an astrophysics lecturer. She and my father divorced when I was nine. She wanted me to go into something more refined than 'cutting people up,' which is how she viewed my father's job."  
  
Laughing, Jing-Mei commented, "I imagine that was a fun conversation."  
  
"Oh, it was! I've always been close to my father, but my mother and I have had our fair share of difficulties. Luckily we've gotten a lot closer the last few years." Smiling softly, she added, "Mark's actually helped quite a bit in that area."  
  
"Nice to know he gets along with his in-laws," Jing-Mei grinned.  
  
"My parents adore him, which makes my life much easier, so I'm not complaining!" Elizabeth laughed, then added, "Actually, now that I think about it, that may be the only thing my parents have agreed on in years."  
  
Mark stepped behind Elizabeth and slipped his arm around her waist. "What are you gossiping about?" he wondered.  
  
"You," Elizabeth replied as if it should be completely obvious.  
  
"Maybe I should keep you out of the ER from now on," he joked.  
  
Elizabeth laughed, then looked around. "Where's David?"  
  
"Over there," Mark replied, pointing to the gurney in Curtain One.  
  
Elizabeth couldn't help but smile as she saw Carter sitting next to David on the gurney, helping him put on a pair of exam gloves. Chuckling, she asked, "How did this happen?"  
  
"I had to put on gloves to look at a wound. David saw me and wanted a pair for himself, so Carter's showing him how to put them on."  
  
"Maybe we do have a future doctor on our hands," Elizabeth commented.  
  
"Maybe," Mark grinned back. "If you can keep an eye on him, I'll just change, grab my stuff and we can get out of here."  
  
"Sounds good to me."  
  
*****  
  
Thirty minutes later, Mark pulled his Ford Expedition into the driveway next to Elizabeth's Lexus sedan. As soon as he turned off the engine and unlocked the doors, David jumped out of the SUV and ran towards the house.  
  
Laughing as he opened the driver's door, Mark wondered, "He does realize he's going to have to wait for one of us to unlock the door, doesn't he?"  
  
Starting up the walk, Elizabeth chuckled. "Don't you remember when you were his age and had that much energy?"  
  
"I just wish I had that much energy at MY age," Mark muttered as he stepped up on the porch then unlocked the door.  
  
After entering the house, David immediately ran up the stairs to his room. Mark and Elizabeth both knew that he was picking out the games he wanted to play after dinner.  
  
Elizabeth picked up the mail, then stepped into the house, closing the door behind her. "Want to order the pizzas now?"  
  
"Sure, I'm starving," Mark nodded. Calling up the stairs, he inquired, "David, what kind of pizza do you want?"  
  
"Cheese!" David yelled back.  
  
"I don't know why I even bother to ask him anymore. It's always cheese," Mark laughed. "How about you? What are you in the mood for?"  
  
Elizabeth though for a moment, then suggested, "How about sausage and mushroom?"  
  
"Sure, sounds good." Walking through the living room, he entered the kitchen and picked up the phone. "I'll order. Anything interesting in the mail?"  
  
Flipping through the stack, she remarked, "Just the usual: bills, catalogs, journals."  
  
"Thrilling," Mark commented sarcastically as he waited for someone to answer on the other end of the phone.  
  
Elizabeth continued to sort through the mail while Mark ordered their dinner. As he hung up, she said, "Remind me to call Tommy Bryant's mother sometime this weekend."  
  
"Everything okay?"  
  
"Yeah, fine," Elizabeth nodded. "It's just that David told him about our plans for pizza and games tonight. He said he didn't do things like that at home. His parents are divorced and his mother's usually so tired when she gets home. I thought we'd let him spend next Friday night with us. That would give him and David a chance to play, and his mother would get a night off."  
  
"Sounds like fun," Mark smiled.  
  
"Do you remember when I said my mother was coming to Chicago for a lecture series next week?"  
  
"Yeah, why?"  
  
"Turns out it's not next week," Elizabeth explained. "Mother called this afternoon, the schedule got changed, so she's now coming in on the eleventh of August. She'll definitely be here for two weeks because of the lectures, but she said she may even stay longer to spend some time with us and David."  
  
"That should be interesting," Mark commented with a wary grin.  
  
"Tell me about it! But at least she's not staying with us. I told her that Rachel was going to be here for soccer camp one week, then spending a week or two with us before school started. Mother said it sounded like we'd have our hands full with a full-house, so she'd just stay at a hotel."  
  
Chuckling, Mark suggested, "Maybe she just knows we don't offer room service."  
  
"Maybe," Elizabeth laughed. She paused a moment, then curiously asked, "Did you give any more thought to what we discussed at lunch?"  
  
"No," he shook his head. "I'm figuring I've got all weekend to think about that. Weaver was walking around all afternoon looking like the cat that swallowed the canary."  
  
"Do you think making her Chief is a good idea?"  
  
Mark sighed heavily. "I'm not sure yet."  
  
"Daddy!" David called from the top of the stairs. "I need your help."  
  
Mark walked through the living room, then up the stairs. "What's wrong?"  
  
"I can't carry all the boxes by myself," David explained as he led Mark into his room, where he had pulled four or five of his favorite games from the bookshelf so that they now rested in the middle of the floor.  
  
"You want to play all of these tonight?" Mark asked with a smile as he kneeled down and picked up the boxes.  
  
"Yup!" David answered happily as they left his room.  
  
"Then let's go find Mummy. Maybe we can get in one game before the pizzas arrive."  
  
*****  
  
After two games of Candy Land, two games of Chutes and Ladders and an ongoing game of Monopoly, Jr., it was quite obvious that David was getting tired. His head was propped against his hand and he was taking longer and longer to complete his turns.  
  
"Are you getting sleepy?" Mark wondered.  
  
"No," David said as he shook his head and stifled a yawn.  
  
"You sure about that?" Mark chuckled. "You look pretty sleepy to me."  
  
"Maybe just a little," David finally admitted, "but I want to finish playing."  
  
Elizabeth thought for a moment, then suggested, "How about this? We can move the board to the dining room table and finish the game tomorrow. Since it's Friday, we'll skip your bath tonight and take you up to bed."  
  
Giving in, or maybe just getting too tired to argue, David sleepily nodded, "Okay."  
  
Looking to Mark, Elizabeth asked, "You want to get him ready for bed while I clean up down here?"  
  
"Sure," Mark replied as he stood and picked up David. Rubbing his son's back, he softly whispered, "Come on, Buddy. Let's get you to bed."  
  
Elizabeth climbed the stairs a few minutes later. Stopping at the door to David's room, she smiled as she watched Mark reading to him.  
  
"'I do not like green eggs and ham! I do not like them, Sam-I-am,'" Mark read.  
  
"But, Daddy, they spell 'green' wrong!" David interrupted.  
  
Mark laughed. "They're talking about the color green, like grass. Not like our name."  
  
"Oh," David said thoughtfully. A moment later, he questioned, "But why would eggs be green? They're suppos'd to be yellow."  
  
"I'm not sure why they'd be green," Mark admitted. "Why don't we keep reading and find out?"  
  
As Mark continued to read, Elizabeth quietly entered the room and sat down on the bed next to them. David was fast asleep by the time Mark finished the book.  
  
"I never get tired of watching him sleep," Elizabeth admitted in a whisper.  
  
"I know," Mark agreed softly.  
  
They remained like that for some time, just watching their son in silence. Mark finally spoke, "We should probably get out of here before he wakes up and wants to spend the rest of the night finishing that game of Monopoly."  
  
"Probably," Elizabeth smiled.  
  
They both gently eased off the bed, tucked the comforter around David and his favorite brown teddy bear, then kissed him on the forehead before turning off the lights and leaving the room.  
  
Standing in the hall, Elizabeth turned to face Mark and slipped her arms around his neck. Smiling, she wondered, "So, now that we have the rest of the night to ourselves, any suggestions as to how we should spend it?"  
  
He chuckled softly. "Earlier today, I seem to remember you mentioning something about 'dessert' after David went to bed."  
  
"I was hoping you remembered that," she replied with a coy smile.  
  
"Oh, really?"  
  
"Mmhmm," she murmured as she found his lips with hers and started walking backwards down the hall towards their bedroom.  
  
*****  
  
Over an hour later, Elizabeth collapsed on the bed as she tried to catch her breath. "That was... amazing."  
  
"Incredible," Mark agreed from where he laid beside her.  
  
"We really need to do this more often," she commented with a grin as she turned on her side to face him. "How long has it been?"  
  
He thought for a moment as he traced an imaginary line along her jaw. "About a week."  
  
"What happened to us, Mark?" she wondered softly, a trace of sadness in her voice.   
  
"How far back do you want to go?" he wondered with a wary smile. "Dad moved to Chicago, then got sick. Six months after he died, I got sick. We got married, David was born. Work."   
  
A soft sigh escaped her lips. "It's just that I sometimes feel like we lost 'us' in the process."  
  
"We haven't," he assured her firmly. "Everything we've been through has just served to confirm what I already know. Which is that I love you, that I want you in my life, that I need you."  
  
"I know, and I feel the same way about you," she whispered. "Maybe we just need to start making a little more time for ourselves."  
  
"Hmm... there's an idea I think I'd like," he grinned.  
  
"I just bet you would," she chuckled as she slipped her hand behind his head and kissed him tenderly.  
  
The kiss slowly came to an end, and she rested her head on his shoulder while lightly trailing her fingers across his chest. Several minutes later, she softly called, "Mark?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
She hesitated, but then shook her head. "It's nothing. Just forget it."  
  
"I know you too well," he reminded her. "What's on your mind?"  
  
She drew in a slow, deep breath, but finally wondered, "Have you ever thought about having another baby?"  
  
He studied her curiously for a moment, then smiled, "Are you trying to tell me something?"  
  
She laughed softly, then shook her head. "No, at least not yet."  
  
"Do you want to have another baby?"  
  
"I don't know," she admitted quietly. "It's probably a crazy idea. Just last week I was complaining about not having enough time to spend with David. And here we are, trying to find more time for ourselves. That would be even harder with a new baby."  
  
He gently lifted her chin so that she was looking at him. "If this is something you really want, we can find a way to make it work."  
  
"I don't know," she repeated. "I suppose it's been in the back of my mind for a while now. David seems to be growing up so fast, and I'm not getting any younger. These first few years with him have been wonderful, where we're the most important thing in his life. But he'll be starting preschool this fall, kindergarten next year. It feels like he's just slipping away."  
  
He smiled and softly reminded her, "He still needs us, Elizabeth. And he will need us for quite a while to come."  
  
"I know, it's just..."  
  
"I know," he whispered as he gently caressed her cheek. "Why don't we just take some time, see how things shake out with the changes at the hospital, then we can give this more thought?"  
  
"That's probably a good idea," she conceded with a soft laugh.   
  
*****  
  
Elizabeth awoke slowly the next morning as the sun stretched its way across the bed. She attempted to ignore it at first and settle back into her dreams; but the warmth on her face soon stirred her senses and she knew sleep was no longer an option. As she opened her eyes, she was greeted by a familiar face, just not the one she was expecting.   
  
"Good morning," she said softly.  
  
"Hi, Mummy!" David grinned.  
  
"What are you doing in here?" Elizabeth wondered with a smile.  
  
"I went to the kitchen for breakfast, but no one was there. I looked for Daddy, but he's not here. So I was waiting for you to wake up and fix me breakfast," David explained.  
  
"Daddy's not here?"  
  
"No," David replied, shaking his head animatedly. "I looked all around, but he's not here."  
  
Elizabeth turned slightly to look over her shoulder, checking the table next to the bed. Usually if Mark left before she woke up, even if he was only going out for a run, he'd leave a note for her. But this morning, the table was empty.  
  
A puzzled expression on her face, Elizabeth climbed out of bed and pulled a robe over her tee shirt and pajama bottoms. "Let's go see if we can find Daddy."  
  
David followed his mother out of the bedroom and down the hall, but looked up in surprise when she stopped at the top of the stairs.  
  
"Did you see if Daddy was in the study?" Elizabeth inquired.  
  
"No, Mummy," David answered solemnly. "I not suppos'd to go in the study."  
  
Elizabeth smiled as she remembered two weeks ago when David went into the study, even though he knew he wasn't supposed to be in there alone, wanting to surprise her while she was working. He accidentally knocked a vase of flowers off her desk, and broke it. The next day, he convinced Mark to take him to the florist, where they picked out a new vase and flowers, which they sent to Elizabeth at work.  
  
"That's right," Elizabeth smiled. "I'm glad you didn't go in there by yourself. But let's see if Daddy's in there now."   
  
Crossing the short hallway, Elizabeth knocked gently on the door before opening it. Upon seeing Mark sitting at the desk, she smiled, "Good morning."  
  
"'Morning," he replied with a smile as he looked up from the computer screen.  
  
"What are you doing in here so early?" Elizabeth wondered as she stepped into the room.  
  
He stretched his arms over his head and drew in a deep breath. "Working on my curriculum vitae."  
  
"Can I come in now?" David asked meekly from the doorway.  
  
Mark laughed. "Yeah, you can come in now. Get over here."  
  
David ran into the room and climbed into Mark's lap. "I didn't think you were home!"  
  
"I was in here working. I looked in your room when I got up, and you were still asleep."  
  
"I woke up and went downstairs for breakfast, but you weren't there and Mummy was asleep," David explained dejectedly.  
  
"From now on, if you can't find me or Mummy, just knock on the door to this room. If we're in here, we'll open the door and let you in," Mark suggested.  
  
"Okay," David agreed happily. "Can we fix breakfast now?"  
  
Elizabeth thought for a moment, then wondered "Would you like pancakes this morning?"  
  
"Yea! Can we have them with blueberries?"  
  
"Yeah, we can put blueberries in them," Elizabeth agreed. "You go downstairs and Daddy and I will be down in a few minutes."  
  
David jumped out of Mark's lap and ran for the door.  
  
Nodding towards the computer, Elizabeth wondered, "Is that for Chief?"  
  
Mark shrugged. "I don't know. It seems pretty bare. I'm not sure I should waste my time."  
  
She stepped behind his chair and wrapped her arms around him, resting her chin on his shoulder. Firmly, she reminded him, "Mark, you are more than qualified to be Chief of the ER. You have worked in that emergency room for the last sixteen years. No one knows how that place works better than you do."  
  
"I have practically nothing published, and I don't chair any professional organizations or committees. I'm just an ER Attending. That's it," he argued.  
  
"No, Mark. That's not it. You are so much more than just an ER Attending," she reminded him firmly.  
  
Warily, he commented, "Thanks, but somehow, how don't think you're exactly objective."  
  
"No, I'm not objective," she admitted freely. With a grin, she added, "But by now, I thought you would have realized that even when I'm not objective, I'm still right."  
  
He just laughed and shook his head. "I'm never going to win with you, am I?"  
  
Moving around the chair so that she could sit in his lap, she slipped her arms around his neck and coyly said, "I thought you already had. After all, I did marry you."  
  
He didn't reply, he just pulled her closer until their lips met. Finally, he pulled back slightly, "And have I mentioned lately how grateful I am that you did?"  
  
She grinned. "You did seem quite appreciative last night."  
  
He chuckled softly as he caressed her cheek with the back of her hand. "What do you have planned for today?"  
  
She drew in a deep breath as she thought for a moment. "Well, after breakfast, I thought I'd get ready, take David for a haircut, go by the grocery store and perhaps stop by the greenhouse to see if they have any flowers that would look nice along the walk."  
  
"You're taking David for a haircut?" he questioned suspiciously. "Does he know about this?"  
  
"Not yet," Elizabeth admitted. "Why do you think we're having pancakes for breakfast?"  
  
"So you're not above bribing our son?" he asked with a laugh.  
  
"If it means I can take him for a haircut and he won't scream his head off the entire time, then yes, bribery works," she replied with a grin. "How about you? What are you planning?"  
  
"I'll give David a bath while you're getting ready, then I'll probably just work on this," he said with a shrug as he gestured towards the computer screen. "Try to figure out if I'm actually going to turn it in, maybe go for a run."  
  
"Mark, you deserve this," she pointed out, her voice taking on a serious tone. But knowing he was hesitant about taking on the administrative responsibilities of the position, she added, "The only thing you really need to be asking yourself is whether this is what you want. I'll support you, no matter what you decide. I'm also here if you just want to talk about it."  
  
"I know," he whispered with a smile. "Thank you."  
  
"Anytime," she said as she kissed him softly.  
  
"Mummy! Can we fix breakfast now?" David yelled from the foot of his stairs.  
  
Mark smiled as they reluctantly parted. "We still haven't talked to him about his timing, have we?"  
  
"Not yet," Elizabeth chuckled. Standing up, she reached for his hand. "Come on. We've got blueberry pancakes to make."  
  
*****  
  
"Mind if I use the Expedition?" Elizabeth wondered as she looked through her purse, checking to see if she had everything she would need.  
  
"Sure. I'm not planning to go out," Mark assured her. "Besides, it's easier to carry the groceries in there, and it would be better if you decided to pick up some flowers."  
  
"Thanks," Elizabeth smiled as she withdrew the keys from her bag. "I was thinking about taking David to the park after we get back. Would you want to go with us?"  
  
"Yeah, that'd be great," he replied absently as he poured more coffee into his mug.  
  
Stepping closer to him, she lightly placed her hand on his cheek. "Are you going to be okay?" she wondered softly.  
  
"Yeah," he nodded with a weak smile. "I just need some time to think."  
  
"I know," she said with a knowing smile. "That's part of the reason I'm getting David out of the house for a while today."  
  
Smiling, he softly said, "Thanks."  
  
"I think we're ready to leave. Want to walk out with us?"  
  
"Sure," Mark nodded. Crossing the living room to the stairs, he called, "David! Mum's ready to go."  
  
"Are you goin' with us, Daddy?" David wondered as he bounced down the stairs a few moments later.  
  
"No, I'm going to stay here and get some work done," Mark explained. "But we can do something together after you and Mummy get back."  
  
"Like basketball?" David grinned.  
  
Laughing, Mark mussed his son's hair as he opened the front door and said, "Yeah, like basketball."  
  
David ran down the walk and stood next to Elizabeth's car.  
  
"We're not going in my car today," Elizabeth told him, "we're using Daddy's."  
  
"Cool!" David exclaimed. He liked riding in the SUV, looking out the windows and being high above all the other cars.  
  
Mark opened the back door of the Expedition and helped David climb in. As he secured the seatbelt around his son, Mark reminded him, "I want you to be good for Mummy. Especially when you get your haircut and in the grocery store. Okay?"  
  
"Okay," David promised with a nod.  
  
"I'll see you this afternoon," Mark said as he kissed David on the forehead and closed the door. Turning to Elizabeth he wondered, "I was going to throw in a load of laundry this morning. Is there anything you want me to do?"  
  
"Thanks for reminding me... I need to pick up our dry cleaning," Elizabeth commented with a grin. "But could you wash the towels and put out fresh ones?"  
  
"Sure," he nodded. "Why don't you pick up a couple of steaks and some potatoes for dinner. I'll grill."  
  
"Sounds great," she agreed, "but what about David? I don't think he's quite ready for steak yet."   
  
"We could grill a chicken breast or a hamburger for him," Mark offered.  
  
"That'll work," she agreed with a smile.  
  
As he kissed her tenderly, he added, "Drive carefully."  
  
"Always," she promised before climbing into the driver's seat and closing the door.  
  
Mark walked back to the front door, but didn't go inside immediately, waiting to wave to David as they left. Once the Expedition disappeared from sight, he entered the house and spent the next forty-five minutes doing various chores around the house: washing the breakfast dishes, starting a load of laundry, making the bed. Finally, he realized he could procrastinate no longer.   
  
Topping off his coffee mug once more, he left the kitchen and went outside to the deck.  
  
Sitting down, he stared out over their backyard. "So, do I want to be ER Chief?" he asked himself after a few moments.  
  
The first time he thought about that question was eight years ago; after Morgenstern's MI, when Weaver was appointed Acting Chief. It was just a few months after he was attacked in the restroom at work. He was still trying to recover from that, his hand was still in the splint, so he convinced himself that he didn't want to be Chief.   
  
Looking back, he knew he wasn't ready to be Chief back then. The attack had taken a greater toll than he'd ever been willing to admit. There were times when it took everything he had just to hold himself together. It would have been next to impossible to keep an entire department together.  
  
It had taken quite a while, but he was finally able to put the attack behind him and move on with his life. Yet when the hospital announced that it was seeing a permanent Chief over a year later, he still wasn't interested. Maybe it was because Rachel had just moved to Saint Louis with Jennifer, and he realized there were things in life more important than the hospital. Maybe it was because he didn't want the competition with Weaver. Maybe it was because he wanted to be a doctor, not an administrator. But whatever it was, he never regretted his decision not to apply.  
  
Even when Weaver finally became Chief of the ER, after Romano became Chief of Staff, Mark wasn't upset that she got the job. He was upset because of the way she got it, by double-crossing him and telling everyone she supported Romano.  
  
But that was over six years ago. So much had happened since then. He lost both of his parents; but he found Elizabeth. He survived the brain tumor, they were married and David was born. He could honestly say that he was happier than he'd ever been in his life, and so much of that was because of Elizabeth. There was no way he could ever fully show his appreciation for everything she'd brought to his life.   
  
She'd never said it, but he knew she loved the idea of them becoming the ultimate hospital power couple, as Chief of Surgery and Chief of Emergency Medicine. She'd always dreamed of being Chief of Surgery, and he would never do anything to stand in the way of that. While he had to admit, there was a definite allure to the prospect of them each chairing a department at the hospital; he still wasn't sure it was for him.  
  
He'd always hated the administrative aspects of his job. The way he saw it, most of the required administrative procedures were hindrances that stood in the way of actually treating patients. He didn't become a doctor to push paper. Then again, as Chief, he might be able to change some of that, to make the place more efficient, to allow the doctors to spend more time with the patients than with the charts.  
  
Perhaps what worried him most was the effect this would have on his relationship with Elizabeth and David. He knew his dedication to his work was largely responsible for ending his marriage with Jennifer. They both made mistakes, but the hours he spent at the hospital instead of at home certainly didn't help matters. Looking back, he couldn't regret the divorce because they were both much happier now. But he refused to make the same mistakes twice. What he'd found with Elizabeth meant too much to him.  
  
He missed out on so much with Rachel was little, which was why he relished the time he was able to spend with David. He still remembered the way he felt the first time he held his son. There were three things going through his mind. The first was just the absolute amazement of knowing that what he shared with Elizabeth had created the tiny, perfect being in his arms. The second was the overwhelming love that he felt for both Elizabeth and David. And the third was a tremendous thankfulness just for being there. He learned of the tumor just hours before Elizabeth told him she was pregnant. There were many nights when he lied awake next to her, fearing that he'd never even see their child. But he didn't worry about that anymore.  
  
Instead, he was home almost every night to give David a bath or read him a story before bed. That followed evenings of making dinner, talking, reading watching movies, playing games or coloring. Just last night, Elizabeth suggested having another child. He didn't want to trade in the time he spent with David, or a new baby, for hours being tied to a desk handling paperwork.  
  
He sighed heavily. He could think of a long list of reasons why he shouldn't take the job, the administrative headaches and time away from David being two of the most important. But in spite of that, there was still a part of him that wanted it. He'd spent too long watching Kerry Weaver run his ER. And it was his ER. He'd spent the last sixteen years of his life there. He knew the name of every person who worked there, every square inch of space and the history that came along with it. He knew how things should be done, how things could be improved. With Weaver as Chief of Staff, ultimately, he'd still have to answer to her; but the day-to-day operations of the ER would be up to him. He liked the sound of that.   
  
After taking the final sip of his coffee, he laughed ruefully. His plan was to spend the morning weighing the pros and cons, deciding whether he wanted to throw his hat into the ring for ER Chief. The only conclusion he'd reached was that he was more conflicted than ever. He finally decided to go for a run. Hopefully that would help clear his head, then he could talk to Elizabeth after David went to bed.  
  
*****  
  
After returning home from their errands, Elizabeth prepared David a snack then she put away the groceries. When that job was done, but Mark still wasn't back from his run, Elizabeth left a note letting him know they could be found at the park.  
  
As mother and son approached the park's entrance, David broke away from Elizabeth's grasp and ran towards the playground.  
  
"David, be careful and stay where I can see you!" Elizabeth called after him. Smiling as she watched him greet his friends from their neighborhood, she sat down on a bench not too far from the playground.  
  
A few minutes later, a woman who appeared to be in her mid-to-late sixties approached Elizabeth. A small beagle on a leash walked next to the her. "May I sit down?" the woman inquired.  
  
"Certainly," Elizabeth replied as she slid over to provide additional room on the bench. Extending her hand, she added, "I'm Elizabeth Corday."  
  
"Barbara Baxter," she replied as they shook hands. Sitting down, she gestured towards her dog. "And this is Frannie, short for Francine."  
  
"Do you live in the neighborhood?" Elizabeth wondered.  
  
"Yes," Barbara nodded. "The white house with green shutters at the corner of Wilson and Orchid."  
  
Elizabeth smiled. "We live on Cedar. The house with the red door."  
  
"How long have you lived here?"  
  
Elizabeth thought for a moment, then answered, "It'll be five years in September. My husband found the house, and when he was showing it to me, he left an engagement ring in the freezer. We were married seven months later."  
  
"How romantic!" Barbara exclaimed. "The most romantic thing my husband and I probably ever did was our honeymoon to Paris. We went back several times on our anniversaries." Rubbing the dog, she added, "That's what prompted me to name her Frannie."  
  
"That's sweet," Elizabeth smiled. "Have you and your husband been to France recently?"  
  
"My James passed away last June," Barbara replied softly. "He'd been battling lung cancer for several years before that."  
  
Sincerely, Elizabeth said, "I'm sorry."  
  
A moment passed were Barbara seemed to be lost in her thoughts. She finally looked back to Elizabeth. "Thank you," she whispered. Drawing in a deep breath, she smiled softly as she asked, "Do you have any children?"  
  
"A son, he's four. And my step-daughter is sixteen." Pointing slightly to her left, she said, "That's my son climbing on the slide, blond hair, red shirt, denim shorts."  
  
"He's adorable," Barbara assured her. "Does your step-daughter live with you?"  
  
"No, she lives with her mother in Saint Louis. She'll be spending a few weeks with us in August."  
  
"How about you? How long have you lived here?" Elizabeth asked curiously.  
  
"Since my husband retired from the Marine Corps, about twenty years."  
  
"Is your family in Chicago?"  
  
Barbara chuckled. "My Heavens, no! They're scattered all about the country. My son Jonathan is a college professor in Virginia. His wife is a artist. They have two children, Bill who's six and Mary who's three. Madeline is a botanist in Texas, she and her partner Anna have been together for two years. And Donnie, my youngest, is a medical student in Berkley."  
  
Elizabeth smiled as she wondered, "Do you get to see them much?"  
  
"Not as much as I'd like," Barbara admitted. Grinning, she added, "But they all know they'd better be home for Christmas and Thanksgiving!"  
  
"It sounds like you have a wonderful family."  
  
"I do," Barbara confirmed. "I'm very proud of each of them. What about you? From your accent, I'm thinking British?"  
  
"Very good," Elizabeth chuckled. "I was born in Sussex, near London. I came over here about eight years ago to gain more experience with trauma."  
  
"Trauma?" Barbara asked with a confused expression.  
  
Elizabeth didn't reply immediately, as she looked around, having momentarily lost sight of David. Finally spotting him climbing on the monkey bars, she breathed a sigh of relief. Turning back to Barbara, she explained, "I'm sorry. I'm a surgeon at County General. There were very few trauma patients in London, I wanted more experience in that area of medicine, so I came here."  
  
"Sadly, a city like Chicago has more than enough of that."  
  
"Oh, yes," Elizabeth agreed warily.  
  
"What does your husband do?" Barbara inquired.  
  
"He's also a doctor," Elizabeth said with a proud smile. "He's currently an attending in the Emergency Department."  
  
Chuckling, Barbara commented, "You're both doctors and you have a four year-old? You must have your hands full!"  
  
"That is a very accurate assessment!" Elizabeth laughed.  
  
"I'll have to introduce you to Donnie, the med. student. I'm sure you both can tell him more than a few stories," Barbara grinned.  
  
Smiling, Elizabeth replied, "I look forward to it."  
  
At that moment, Elizabeth saw David trip as he ran around the swing set. Falling to the ground, he began to cry. Elizabeth jumped up from the bench and made her way through the crowd of children who were gathering around him. Kneeling next to him, she cupped his face and asked, "Are you okay?"  
  
"My leg hurts," David said through the tears.  
  
Elizabeth saw a sharp-looking rock lying next to him, and she concluded that was the source of the nasty gash she found on his left shin. "We need to get that cleaned up. Are you hurt anywhere else? Did you hit your head?"  
  
"No," he tearfully shook his head. "Just my leg."  
  
"Okay, let's take care of this," Elizabeth said with a smile as she picked him up and carried him back to the bench.  
  
"Is he all right?" Barbara asked in concern.  
  
"He will be," Elizabeth assured her. Opening her bag, she pulled out a first aid kit. She caressed David's cheek as she said, "I need to clean this, and it may sting a little, okay?"  
  
"'Kay," David nodded as he closed his eyes tightly, but whimpered as Elizabeth started to clean the cut.  
  
Gesturing to the first aid kit, Barbara commented, "You certainly come prepared."  
  
"I'm a doctor with a four year-old," Elizabeth replied. "I have to be."  
  
After cleaning the wound, she carefully examined it, debating whether he would need stitches. Finally deciding against it, she applied an antibiotic ointment and unwrapped a bandage, which she placed on his leg. Kissing the bandage, then David's forehead, she said, "You're going to be okay, but I want you to sit here with me for a little while, just to make sure the bleeding stops."  
  
"Okay, Mummy," David agreed quietly.  
  
Moving to sit next to him on the bench, Elizabeth carefully pulled her son into her lap. Stroking his hair, she wondered, "Are you feeling better?"  
  
"I cried in front of everybody," he said sadly, as he shook his head.  
  
"That's a pretty bad cut," Elizabeth pointed out. "If it had happened to me, I'd cry. I think Daddy would, too."  
  
"Really?" David questioned suspiciously.  
  
"Really," Elizabeth confirmed. Looking to Barbara, she smiled as she said, "There's somebody I'd like you to meet. David, this is Mrs. Baxter, she's one of our neighbors. Mrs. Baxter, this is my son, David."  
  
"Hi, David," Barbara smiled. "You can call me Barbara. You both can. Your mommy must be a very good doctor. She did a great job with your cut."  
  
"She is a good doctor," David confirmed proudly. "So's my daddy."  
  
"My son's going to be a doctor one day soon."  
  
"How old is he?" David inquired.  
  
"He'll be twenty-five next month."  
  
Scrunching his face, David questioned, "Twenty-five? That's old!"  
  
Elizabeth and Barbara both laughed at that, then Barbara asked, "And how old are you?"  
  
"I'm four!" David announced as he held up four fingers. Looking at the dog who was laying next to the bench. "Is that your puppy?"  
  
"Yes, she is," Barbara confirmed as she patted the dog's head. "Her name is Frannie. Would you like to play with her? She's very gentle, very good with kids."  
  
David looked unsure, so Elizabeth wondered, "Do you want to play with the dog? She won't hurt you."  
  
"Okay," David nodded hesitantly.  
  
"Frannie, up!" Barbara ordered as she patted the spot on the bench next to her, prompting the small dog to jump from the ground onto to the bench. Demonstrating for David, Barbara explained, "Just let her smell your hand, then rub her gently. She really likes it if you scratch under her ears and her chin. But don't pull on her paws, her tail or her ears."  
  
David tentatively extended his hand, which Frannie sniffed for a few moments, then licked. He giggled as he pulled back. "It's a girl dog?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Is she sick?"  
  
Barbara looked confused. "No. Why do you think she's sick?"  
  
"Her nose is running. When my noes runs it's because I'm sick," David explained.  
  
Laughing, Barbara shook her head. "She's not sick. When you get hot, you sweat to cool off, right?" Off David's nod, she continued, "Well, Frannie can't sweat through her skin. Instead, she releases that heat through her nose and her paws."  
  
"Oh," David said curiously as he rubbed the dog's head.  
  
"She's going to be having puppies later this year," Barbara informed him with a smile.  
  
A huge grin spread across David's face. "Really? When?"  
  
"Probably sometime in October. I'm planning to sell the puppies to good homes for Christmas."  
  
"Can I have one?" David asked excitedly.  
  
Elizabeth drew in a deep breath. "David, a puppy is a very big responsibility. You have to feed it, spend time playing with it, take it for walks and let it outside to go to the bathroom."  
  
Solemnly, David assured her, "I'll do it, Mummy. I promise."  
  
"Why don't we wait and talk to Daddy about it? Besides, Barbara said the puppies won't be born until October, so we have some time to think about it," Elizabeth suggested.  
  
"Okay," David agreed reluctantly. "But I really want a puppy, Mummy!"  
  
"We'll think about it," Elizabeth said firmly, making sure her son knew the subject was closed for the time-being.  
  
Chuckling, Barbara said, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to start something."  
  
"Don't worry about it," Elizabeth smiled.  
  
Elizabeth and Barbara continued to talk as David played with Frannie. Some time later, David looked up and exclaimed, "Daddy!"  
  
Turning in the direction David was pointing, Elizabeth smiled as she saw Mark jogging towards them.  
  
Reaching them, Mark leaned over and gently kissed Elizabeth. As the kiss ended, he looked to David and noticed the bandage on his son's leg. Kneeling in front of the bench, Mark said, "Hey, Buddy! What happened to your leg?"  
  
"I fell," David said sadly.  
  
"Well, that's no fun," Mark offered sympathetically. "Are you feeling okay?"  
  
With a shrug, he replied, "Yeah, I guess."  
  
"It's pretty deep," Elizabeth added. "I don't think it needs sutures, but I wanted to keep an eye on it. You want to take a look?"  
  
Mark laughed. "You're asking me for a consult? I thought it was usually the other way around."  
  
Mussing David's hair, she admitted, "I'm not really objective when it comes to this little guy, so I wouldn't mind a second opinion. Besides, you see more lacs than I do."  
  
Looking to David, Mark wondered, "Do you mind if I take a look at your cut?"  
  
"Will it hurt?"  
  
"No, it won't hurt," Mark promised. "I'm just going to look at it."  
  
"Okay," David hesitantly nodded in agreement.  
  
Mark carefully pulled back the bandage and studied at the wound. Sighing softly, he said, "You're right. It is fairly deep, but it seems to be closing pretty well on its own. We still have some time where we can put sutures in if it comes to that."  
  
"Am I gonna be okay?" David questioned.  
  
"Yeah, you're going to be just fine," Mark assured him.  
  
David grinned, then said, "Daddy, look at the puppy!"  
  
"Did you make a new friend?" Mark smiled.  
  
"Mark, this is Barbara Baxter. She lives at the corner of Wilson and Orchid, the white house with the green shutters. Barbara, this is my husband, Mark Greene," Elizabeth explained, making the introductions.  
  
"Nice to meet you," Mark said as they shook hands.  
  
"Same here," Barbara smiled.  
  
"Daddy, Frannie's gonna have puppies in October. Can I have one?" David asked insistently.  
  
Mark glanced to Elizabeth, and from her look, he suggested, "We'll think about it, okay?"  
  
"Okay," David nodded, "but I really want a puppy, Daddy."  
  
"We'll think about it," Mark repeated with a laugh.  
  
"Barbara was just telling me that her youngest son is a medical student," Elizabeth mentioned.  
  
"Really?" Mark grinned. Joking, he added, "Tell him to get out now, while he still can!"  
  
"You don't recommend it as a career choice?" Barbara questioned curiously.  
  
Mark thought for several moments, then said, "It's a lot of hard work, and it never seems to stop. But it does have it's rewards, and there are moments when I truly couldn't imagine doing anything else."  
  
"Mummy, I'm hungry!" David interrupted.  
  
Checking her watch, Elizabeth saw that it was after twelve-thirty, and well past David's usual lunch time. "I guess we do need to get you home for lunch, don't we?" she asked with a smile.  
  
"Can I have a peanut butter and 'nanna sanwich?" David requested excitedly.  
  
"Sure," Elizabeth agreed as she lifted David off her lap and helped him stand. "Are you okay? Does your leg hurt?"  
  
David took a few tentative steps around the bench, then said, "It's okay."  
  
"Think you can walk home?" Mark questioned.  
  
"I can walk," David announced proudly.  
  
"Say goodbye to Barbara and Frannie," Elizabeth instructed, "then we'll go home."  
  
"Bye! Thank you for letting me play with your puppy."  
  
"You're quite welcome," Barbara replied with a smile. "We come to the park often, so hopefully you can play with her again soon. She really seemed to like you."  
  
"Cool!" David exclaimed.  
  
"Barbara, it was very nice meeting you. We'll see you soon," Elizabeth said as she stood and gathered their things.  
  
"Nice meeting you, too."  
  
David walked hand-in-hand with his parents as they left the park and started towards their house.  
  
*****  
  
From his position on the sofa, Mark glanced over his shoulder as he heard Elizabeth come down the stairs later that evening. "Did he put up a fight?"  
  
"Yeah," Elizabeth sighed as she collapsed in the opposite corner of the sofa. "We read 'Horton Hears a Who!' 'One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish' and got halfway through 'The Lorax.' I was actually surprised. After the day he had, I figured he'd be asleep in five minutes, especially since he only napped for about an hour this afternoon."  
  
Grinning, Mark questioned, "Yesterday, weren't you the one commenting on how we should be wishing for the energy we had at his age?"  
  
"Oh, be quiet!" she muttered as she tossed a pillow in his direction.  
  
He laughed as he caught the pillow. "So, what should we do now that David's asleep?"  
  
"Why don't you start by telling me why it seems like you've been a thousand miles away most of the day?" she asked with a soft smile.  
  
"How long have we been together?" he questioned rhetorically. A moment later, he smiled as he added, "I think you already know the answer."  
  
She smiled back, then suggested, "ER Chief?"  
  
"Yeah," he admitted quietly. "There's a part of me that wants it, that really wants it. It's my ER, Elizabeth. I've been there longer than almost anyone else, I know it inside and out, I know how it should be run."  
  
"But?" she supplied.  
  
Several moments passed where he didn't say a thing. It was something that he hated admitting to himself, which made it all that much harder to admit to anyone else, especially her. "But I sacrificed everything for the ER once. I won't do that again. You and David mean too much to me."  
  
She knew he was talking about the divorce from Jennifer, for which he still blamed himself. Smiling sympathetically, she reminded him, "You and Jennifer both made mistakes. It wasn't all your fault."  
  
"Maybe not," he conceded, "but I certainly didn't help matters any."  
  
"Okay," she said with a nod. "I don't completely agree with that, but I won't argue. I do, however, think you are forgetting one very important thing."  
  
"What's that?" he questioned suspiciously.  
  
Grinning, she answered, "That I'm not Jennifer."  
  
He had to laugh. "Believe me, I don't think I could forget that, even if I tried."  
  
"Mark, if you really want this job, then you should go for it," she pointed out seriously. "We can find a way to make it work."  
  
He sighed heavily. Then several moments passed before he finally spoke. "If we're both running departments, that's going to mean more time at the hospital, less time here, less time with David. I know you want to be Chief of Surgery, and I'll do everything I can to support you in that. I just don't want to see David spending all hours of the day and night in daycare or with a sitter."  
  
It was now her turn to sigh. "Perhaps you're right. I was just complaining about not being able to spend enough time with him, and here I am wanting to spend more time on work."  
  
"I thought we already discussed this," he commented with a smile. "Even when Romano was here, you were running the surgical service and you were still able to spend plenty of time with David. It only became a problem after you took on the responsibilities of Chief of Staff, too. With Weaver's appointment next week, you'll be back to having more time with David."  
  
"I hope you're right."  
  
"I am," he assured her with a confident grin. "Besides, since you're running the department, you can delegate."  
  
Grinning back, she wondered, "So why doesn't that rationale work for you?"  
  
Turning serious, he concluded, "Because I don't have that many administrative responsibilities right now. Becoming Chief would be a big change."  
  
She thought for a few moments, then suggested, "You could always cut back on your hours working in the ER to make time for the admin."  
  
He regarded her warily. "I'm an ER doc, Elizabeth. I'm not ready to give that up."  
  
"You wouldn't have to. You'd still be working in the ER, just not quite as much."  
  
"I don't know," he sighed.  
  
"The choice is yours," she assured him. "I think you'd make an excellent Chief of Emergency Medicine. I think you're exactly what that ER needs. But more than anything, I want you to be happy. If that means being an attending, that's fine. And if that means being Chief, we'll find a way to make it work."  
  
*****  
  
Elizabeth stretched slightly as she woke up the next morning. Looking to the clock next to the bed, she smiled as she saw it was ten minutes after eight. She loved Sunday mornings, sleeping in, leisurely breakfasts, hours spent reading the newspaper.  
  
Carefully turning over, she smiled as she saw Mark lying next to her. She knew it wasn't always possible, but if she could have her way, they'd fall asleep together every night and wake up together every morning.   
  
Ten minutes passed before a voice called, "Mummy? Daddy?"  
  
Looking to the door, Elizabeth found David carrying his bear in one hand and wiping sleep from his eyes with the other. "Good morning," she said softly. "You're up early."  
  
"Is it time for breakfast?" David wondered.  
  
"In a little while," she assured him with a nod. "You want to come in here with us first?"  
  
"Yeah," he replied happily as he ran into the room.  
  
"Just be quiet. Daddy's still sleeping," Elizabeth whispered.  
  
As David climbed onto the bed, Elizabeth slid over to make room for him between her and Mark. Tucking the comforter around him, she wondered, "Did you sleep well last night?"  
  
Trying to stifle a yawn, he nodded, "Mmmhmm."  
  
"How's your leg feeling this morning?" Elizabeth asked in a concerned tone. "Does it hurt?"  
  
"It's okay. It doesn't hurt," David shrugged.  
  
"Let's just lay here for a little while, then we'll go fix breakfast," Elizabeth suggested. She then wrapped her arm around him and stroked his hair as they drifted back to sleep.  
  
Mark awoke some time later and chuckled softly as he turned to find David lying next to him, quietly talking to his bear. "Hey, Buddy!"  
  
"Daddy!" David replied.  
  
Seeing that Elizabeth was still asleep, Mark quietly wondered, "What are you doing in here?"  
  
"Mummy said I could come in here, then we'd go fix breakfast, but she went back to sleep," David explained forlornly.  
  
"I think I know how to wake her up," Mark grinned.  
  
A curious look passed over David's face as he asked, "How?"  
  
"Move over," Mark instructed, motioning for David to slide towards the foot of the bed. Mark then carefully brushed Elizabeth's hair back from her face before kissing her tenderly.  
  
Her eyes fluttered opened a few moments later. Smiling, she murmured, "'Morning."  
  
"Mummy woke up, just like Snow White!" David exclaimed.  
  
"What?" Elizabeth questioned in confusion.  
  
"David wanted you to wake up so we could fix breakfast. I told him I knew how to wake you up."  
  
"You definitely know how to do that," Elizabeth chuckled.  
  
Turning to David, Mark wondered, "What do you want for breakfast?"  
  
"Pancakes!"  
  
"We had pancakes yesterday morning," Mark reminded him. After thinking for a moment, he suggested, "What about omelets?"  
  
"With lots of cheese?"  
  
As he pulled David closer and began to tickle him, Mark confirmed, "With lots of cheese."  
  
Deciding to get in on the action, Elizabeth began to tickle Mark. Before long, all three of them were laughing hysterically as they collapsed on the bed.  
  
*****  
  
The lights were off, an empty popcorn bowl sat on the coffee table and only the flickering images of the television illuminated the room. Mark and Elizabeth sat next to each other on the sofa, with David stretched out across their laps.  
  
As the credits began to role on "101 Dalmatians," Mark muttered, "I think we've seen this movie one hundred and one times."  
  
"It's his favorite," Elizabeth reminded him with a smile. Nodding to their son, she softly wondered, "Is he asleep?"  
  
"I think so," Mark replied as he carefully lifted David's body and slid out from beneath him. "I'll take him up to bed."  
  
Elizabeth leaned over and kissed David on the forehead. "Goodnight, Sweetheart," she whispered.  
  
"Daddy?" David mumbled as Mark picked him up.  
  
"Shhhhh," Mark whispered. "Go back to sleep, Buddy. I'm just taking you up to bed."  
  
When he came back downstairs a few minutes later he commented, "Giving him a bath and putting his PJs on before the movie was a good idea. He was sound asleep by the time I tucked him in."  
  
"He needed that bath after making mud pies all afternoon!" Elizabeth laughed.  
  
Chuckling as he sat down next to her, he said, "I thought he was helping you plant flowers."  
  
"That's what I let him think," Elizabeth replied with a grin and a twinkle in her eye. Noticing the envelope he was holding, she turned serious as she wondered, "What's that?"  
  
Without a word, he passed it to her. She looked at the front of the envelope.  
  
Kerry Weaver, M.D.  
Chief of Staff  
County General Hospital  
  
Turning back to Mark, Elizabeth again wondered, "What is this?"  
  
"Open it and see," he suggested.  
  
She carefully withdrew the two pieces of paper, unfolded them and read. Slowly, a smile spread across her face. Refolding the papers, she carefully placed them back into the envelope, then looked to Mark. "What made you decide to go for it?"  
  
"You were a pretty big part of it," he admitted with a smile.  
  
"What'd I do?" she questioned curiously.  
  
"You made me realize that I deserve the job," he explained quietly. "I want it, but I think there was a part of me that didn't believe I deserved it, that I wasn't qualified, that I didn't have the publication or committee experience. But after we talked last night, I thought about it, and I decided I had to go for it. I'm not going to be happy seeing anyone else run that ER, but if I don't even try for it myself, I can't complain if that happens. Besides, I've been telling you how we can balance work and time with David as long as we do it together. I figure it's time I started acting like I believe it."  
  
"We can make this work together," she assured him firmly.  
  
He hesitated a moment, but then asked, "You think I'm making the right decision?"  
  
"Yes, I do," she said solemnly. "You're more than qualified, you've paid your dues, you deserve this. And you just said it yourself, this is what you want. I know you're not crazy about the administrative parts of the job, but if you know you have to, and you put your mind to it, you can get it done and still have plenty of time to actually practice."  
  
He nodded thoughtfully. "What about David?"  
  
"If we're both Chiefs, we'll have a lot more control over our schedules. We can alternate our shifts so that one of us is there with him after daycare, and we can make the most of the time we have on the weekends."  
  
He rested his head on the back of the sofa and drew in a deep breath. Warily, he commented, "I'm really doing this."  
  
"Yes, you are," she commented with a grin.  
  
Turning slightly to look at her, he smiled softly. "Thank you."   
  
"For what?"  
  
"For believing in me."  
  
"That was the easy part."  
  
"So what's the hard part?" he wondered.  
  
She laughed as that mischievous sparkle that he loved returned to her eyes. "Surviving with Weaver as Chief of Staff!"  
  
*****  
  
Tuesday afternoon, Mark closed the door on his locker and left the lounge. Approaching the desk, he said, "Carter, I need to head upstairs for a little while. Can you cover things down here?"  
  
"Sure," Carter nodded. "Can we page you if it gets crazy down here? Or can you not be interrupted?"  
  
"You can page me," Mark replied with a shrug. "It's not a problem."  
  
Grinning, Carter wondered, "Would this happen to have anything to do with the fact that the ER's in need of a new Chief, now that Dr. Weaver's Chief of Staff."  
  
Mark laughed. "Carter, don't you have patients to take care of?"  
  
A few minutes later, Mark stepped off the elevator and walked down the hall. Entering the reception area, he asked, "Is she available?"  
  
"You can go on in."  
  
Mark tapped gently on the door, which was partially open. "Kerry?"  
  
Looking up, Kerry said, "Mark, what's going on? Everything okay downstairs?"  
  
"Everything's fine," Mark assured her. Withdrawing the envelope from his lab coat, he handed it to her. "Actually, I wanted to give you this."  
  
"What is it?" Kerry questioned curiously as she took the envelope.  
  
He sat down in the chair across from her desk before he answered. "My letter of intent for Chief of Emergency Medicine."  
  
Taken aback, Kerry was speechless for several moments. Finally, she stammered, "You-you're applying for ER Chief."  
  
"Yes," Mark replied simply.  
  
Recovering her composure a bit, she admitted, "I never thought you were interested in the position."  
  
"When the position was available in the past, I wasn't interested," Mark freely acknowledged. "Quite a bit has changed in my life over the past few years. I'm now ready to undertake the responsibilities of the position."  
  
Kerry nodded thoughtfully. "In that case, I'll forward your letter and C.V. to the Board."  
  
"Thanks, but there is one request I'd like to make."  
  
"What's that?"  
  
"I've reviewed the hospital's employment policy. As far as I can tell, there shouldn't be a problem if Elizabeth and I were both to serve as department chiefs." He stopped and thought for a moment, then continued. "If, however, the Board feels differently, I'd like you to withdraw my letter from consideration."  
  
Kerry studied him for a few moments, not completely sure she understood. "Are you saying that if only one of you can be Chief, then you want it to be Elizabeth?"  
  
"Yes," he answered firmly.  
  
Reflexively, she inquired, "Why?"  
  
He drew in a deep breath. "Elizabeth spent most of the past eight years slaving away for Romano. After he became Chief of Staff, she kept the surgical service running while he took the credit. For the last month, she's been running the hospital and the surgical service, but she was still there to give David a bath or read him a story every night and to ask him about his day. She deserves this, and I'll be the last one to stand in her way."  
  
"Okay," Kerry said with an understanding smile. "If it comes to that, I'll make sure the Board knows how you feel."  
  
"Thank you," Mark replied quietly, but sincerely. Standing to leave, he added, "I'll be in the ER if you need me."  
  
*****  
  
THE END  
  
I'd love to know what you think. Please send all comments and feedback to SixteenOzs02@yahoo.com LLP  
  
April 30, 2001  
  



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